Splash Mountain was one of Disney World’s most popular attractions for 30 years. So when the ride, which involves sliding a log-shaped cart through water-filled gutters, closed for good at the end of January, rather than say goodbye, some Disney fans were left with an intriguing question: How much would someone be willing to pay for a plastic bag containing Splash Mountain water?
Many fans queued for hours over the weekend for one last five-story dive at the park near Orlando, Florida, and after the closure eBay began to see offers of what sellers were describing such as small amounts of water from Splash Mountain, which used the equivalent of 3.6 million liters of water.
Prices ranged from $8.50 (R$42.41) to $25 (about R$125) for a plastic bag containing “Splash Mountain water”, according to what was written in black felt-tip pen. on the packaging, which also included a design of water drops, to emphasize the contents.
One of the offers showed a reusable bottle that supposedly contained 300 milliliters of water collected on the last day of operation of the ride, for US$ 7.99 (R$ 40). Another vendor advertised 120 ml of Splash Mountain water, in a glass bottle, for $149.95.
Fan offers come at a time when Disney has been trying to erase the racist history of the toy, whose theme is the film “The Song of the South” (1946), which the company has not made available in any format for over 35 years.
When the ride reopens next year, Br’er Rabbit and other characters from the film will be gone, replaced by characters and themes from “The Princess and the Frog,” a 2009 Disney film. The toy will have a new name, Tiana’s Bayou Adventure. A similar plan is being adopted for Disneyland’s Splash Mountain in California, although this second toy will continue to operate for the time being.
Adrian Vasquez, 28, who has visited Splash Mountain more than 200 times, said he wasn’t the least bit surprised to see the water toy listings on eBay.
“The Disney community can be pretty weird sometimes,” said Vasquez, 28, who says he didn’t take any souvenirs from his last visit to Splash Mountain.
Disney announced its plans for change in 2020, during the national reckoning triggered in the United States by the murder of George Floyd.
“Song of the South”, which was set on a farm in Georgia after the American Civil War, mixed bits of animation and bits of action with actors in a way that was innovative for the time, and won an Oscar for the song “Zip-a-Dee -Doo-Dah”.
But the film’s critics had long argued that the story — based on books by Joel Chandler Harris, a white folklorist who collected traditional African-American tales and attributed them to Uncle Remus, a fictional character — romanticized slavery and promoted racist stereotypes.
Bob Iger, Disney’s chief executive, declared in 2020 that the film would never be offered on Disney+, the company’s streaming platform, because “it was not appropriate for today’s world”.
When the rides reopen at the parks next year, guests will meet Princess Tiana, Disney’s first black princess, and Louis the alligator, who will be preparing for his first Mardi Gras performance. “The new concept is inclusive,” Disney said in 2020. “It addresses the diversity of the millions of people who visit our parks each year.”
A native of central Florida and now a resident of Tampa, Vasquez said he grew up going to the park, and that Splash Mountain was his first “big kid’s play.” He even worked there, in 2015, when he was at university.
“Even the people who trained me there said the source material was racist,” he claimed. “It is appropriate that an attraction based on a film that negatively portrays people of color be replaced with Disney’s first African-American princess. This change will represent a huge step forward for many non-white Disney fans who are seeking more representation in the parks.”
He said he hoped the new toy would offer the same thrills, but wanted to say goodbye to the original on closing day.
And so, in the morning, Vasquez arrived 45 minutes before the park opened to the public at 9:00 a.m., and then took part in what he describes as a “5,000-meter run” to Splash Mountain — crowds of visitors running in search of of a vacancy for one last ride.
According to The Orlando Sentinel, some visitors spent five hours in line, which seemed endless. A group of fans chanted “splash! Splash! Splash!” as the logs entered the gutters to begin the ride. Disney employees made the last descent on the ride, and were applauded by delighted fans.
“There was some sadness, but also a sense of celebration in the air,” said Vasquez. He said he took three walks on the last day of operation, one of them accompanied by his mother.
“It was a little sad, but also a lot of fun,” he said.
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